Most Helpful Customer Reviews

The bottom line here is that you have a nice printer/scanner/fax that has to be tied to a computer via UBS that will cost you around $100 every time you need burn through 2500 copies. Why on earth did Panasonic design it that way? Do they think that people are stupid and don't know that what they bought can only give them 500 copies from a starter cartridge? It is an insult! If they were serious about making a very sellable product they would consider that the consumer wants wireless or at least network ready capability and replacement supplies that don't cost an arm and a leg. As more and more computers are made wireless this unit will soon be a dinosaur. In my office I have a Brother product that is easy to maintain and networks to other users in the office. I think I will stick with that. Too bad Panasonic provides over-priced supplies to (in their minds) make up for selling a machine at a reduced cost. We consumers are way too up on that!

This Panasonic KX-MB1520 Monochrome Printer, Scanner, and Fax machine is a good option for a small business or home user that doesn't require a network capable multifunction device. We run a small business in a very large facility that is laid-out to support a few different tasks, each in there own area, so we have a few workstations setup around the building. Since all of the main networked scanners and printers are in the forward office area, it is handy having this multifunction device in the rear packaging and shipping area. Here are my observations:

I installed this device and connected it to my mac without any problems at all. I did not test the faxing capabilities (noticed there is no handset, but the manual is talking about the speaker capabilities while faxing/calling). However printing and scanning worked great. The product is compact and with access to the front of the device, it can fit nicely in my home office.

The tray could be sturdier but it held quite a big stack of paper (more than my other printer). I was able to magnify and expand one page into multiple ones, combine many pages into one (really nicely) and most easily, using the "Quick ID Copy" feature, copy a 2-sided credit card on one page without having to take the output page and feed it through again. There is no feeder, only a flat bed, which can be a problem for large documents.I noticed that in printing photographs you cannot see too much detail especially in the dark areas, so I guess the contrast could be better. Overall, this is a great product for a home office where volume is low and not an issue.

These days, I judge printers by the cost of their consumables (ink and drum). The Panasonic KX-MB1520 is very small printer for an all-in-one. Its output quality, speed, and noise levels are all good, but pretty average for an entry-level laser printer.

Even though the initial cost is relatively cheap, it loses some utility because it isn't network-capable; it doesn't support Ethernet or Wi-Fi. This really limits its usefulness and pigeon-holes it for light duty use on a desk next to a single PC. To make matters worse, the toner is hard to find and expensive. If you need something very basic and compact, it might be worth the cost, but for most people, I think there are better options.

This is a compact printer that will handle the occasional print job, scan, copy, or fax just fine. I wouldn't recommend it for heavy duty use.

I really do like this printer, but it isn't replacing my big workhorse of a laser printer. It's attached to a little-used laptop that's off the beaten path. The good news is that it's got a small footprint, about 15" x 14" x 8", so it doesn't take much space. There's no output tray to stick out into a walkway, since the output is stored just below the scan bed. Right now this printer is on a table that's been too small to use for anything else, and it's tucked into a corner, out of the way.

Pros:

* Multi-function in a compact form factor.* Copy quality is acceptable--not the best I've ever seen, but quite clear enough for most tasks.* Scan quality is good enough for routine tasks. Professional photographers won't be replacing their scanners with this, but for most documents or snapshots it's fine. Max resolution is 600 dpi.* All the functions I normally need seem to be buttons on the front of the device, which means I don't have to scroll through menus to find them. For me this is a huge improvement over my old Epson multi-function (insert curse words here.)* Prints very nearly 19 plain text pages per minute.* Setup was quick and easy.* Included software is pretty easy to use.

Cons:* No networking.* Does not print duplex.* Paper tray only holds 150 pages.* Flimsy paper tray, can be fussy about feeding in paper. Some gentle percussive maintenance seems to fix the problem.* Two line display is not illuminated and is difficult to read.Read more ›